Legal information

Legal information

Terms of Use

As of March 28, 2014

Stud.IP is operated by the University Computer Center (HRZ) of the University of Giessen. The HRZ's terms of use therefore apply to the use of Stud.IP. Users will be made aware of the terms of use for Stud.IP and the reference to the HRZ's terms of use at the latest when they log in to Stud.IP for the first time and via a corresponding notice on the login page.

The HRZ's terms of use stipulate the following principles for the use of Stud.IP, among others:

  1. A prerequisite for using Stud.IP is the allocation of a user authorization (account) in accordance with §3 of the HRZ's terms of use. The login name is determined by the issuing authority.
  2. Authorization for the Stud.IP production system also applies to the Stud.IP test system. The HRZ may restrict or suspend access to this system at any time for technical reasons [§8. HRZ Terms of Use] at any time; therefore, there is no entitlement to access this test system. The HRZ reserves the right to delete data in this system at any time for technical reasons; data in the test system is not backed up.
  3. Use for the purposes permitted under §2 (I) of the HRZ Terms of Use requires compliance with the following guidelines:
    1. Each user may use exactly one account in Stud.IP. The identity of the user must be derivable from this account.
    2. Stud.IP requires the use of real names. The user undertakes to provide his/her correct and complete first and last name as well as the correct department(s)/institute(s) where he/she is active. Fictitious information is not permitted.
    3. As a rule, authentication takes place via the HRZ's LDAP/X.500 servers. The HRZ is entitled to verify the personal data necessary for the proper use of Stud.IP (first and last name, email address) with the personal data stored on the LDAP/X.500 server.
  4. The user must regularly read the messages from Stud.IP that are sent via Stud.IP and, if applicable, also forwarded to the university email address [according to §4 (I) 11. Terms of Use of the HRZ].
  5. All other personal information is provided voluntarily, but must be correct if provided. If you provide additional personal data, this will only be accessible to other registered users of the system. Exceptions to this are personnel directories of the participating institutes that are automatically generated by the system and personal data that has been released on external sites.
  6. The use of Stud.IP is only permitted within the scope of courses administered by Stud.IP – and, in the case of the test installation, also for evaluation purposes to a reasonable extent. In particular, it is not permitted to offer files with purely private content or to use the chat, pinboard, profile, and bulletin board functions for private or commercial purposes. [According to §2 (I)  Terms of Use of the HRZ]
  7. The user shall ensure that he/she does not violate any applicable legal provisions when using the service [in accordance with §5 (II) of the HRZ Terms of Use]. In particular, the user undertakes:
    1. not to use Stud.IP to access or distribute immoral or illegal content,
    2. to observe the applicable youth protection regulations,
    3. to respect the privacy of others and therefore under no circumstances to post or send harassing, defamatory or threatening content,
    4. to protect the property and exploitation rights of third parties to files (this applies in particular to files created by third parties or images depicting third parties, and to so-called inline links where the authorship of third parties to the linked content is not immediately apparent to the viewer);
    5. not to run any applications that could lead to a change in the physical or logical structure of the networks used,
    6. not to use Stud.IP to distribute advertising or marketing messages.
  8. The user undertakes to protect his/her access against unauthorised use by third parties; disclosure of the password is prohibited [according to §4 (I) 5. Terms of Use of the HRZ].
  9. When storing files in Stud.IP, the user must ensure, within the scope of the usual duties of care, that the files to be stored are free of viruses and malicious functions [according to §4 (I) 3 of the HRZ Terms of Use]. The HRZ is entitled to delete files containing viruses or malicious functions immediately and without prior notification to the owner in order to maintain data security and protect other users [according to §8 (VII) of the HRZ Terms of Use]. The HRZ is not liable for damage caused by files downloaded from Stud.IP [according to §11 (I) of the HRZ Terms of Use].
  10. In the event of a violation of the above obligations by the user,
    1. he/she shall be liable for any damages and shall indemnify the University of Giessen against any liability claims by third parties [in accordance with §10 (IV) and §10 (V) of the HRZ Terms of Use]. This also applies to damages caused by third parties if the user has enabled third-party use, for example by passing on their password [according to §4 (II) of the HRZ Terms of Use].
    2. After issuing a warning by email (or immediately in serious cases), the University Computer Centre may temporarily restrict access or, in the event of a repeat offence (and in serious cases), permanently restrict or block access (e.g. by downgrading rights to ‘read-only’). If misuse of an account is suspected, it may be temporarily blocked until the matter has been clarified. [According to §10 of the HRZ Terms of Use]